MONTREAL – Montreal Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin announced on Monday that the team has bought out the contract of Pierre-Alexandre Parenteau. The 32-year-old forward was under contract with the Club until the end of the 2015-16 season.

"I would like to thank Pierre-Alexandre for his time as a Montreal Canadien and wish him the best with his career. It was a difficult decision to make, but we feel it gives us more flexibility as we continue to improve our club and provide our young prospects with an opportunity to earn a spot on our roster," said general manager Marc Bergevin.

Parenteau was acquired by the Canadiens from the Colorado Avalanche on June 30, 2014 with a fifth round pick in 2015, in return for forward Daniel Brière. Parenteau recorded 22 points (8 goals, 14 assists) in 56 regular season games with the Canadiens in 2014-15.

Colorado Avalanche right wing PA Parenteau injured his right knee on his first shift in the first period Monday against the Winnipeg Jets at Pepsi Center and is likely to miss the remainder of the regular season.

"We'll see for playoffs, but he will be out for four to six weeks," Avalanche coach Patrick Roy said of Parenteau, who sustained an injury to his medial collateral ligament and wore a brace on his right leg after the game, which the Avalanche won 3-2 in overtime.

Parenteau attempted to come back for an early power play, but he wasn't able to skate well enough and left the ice for the rest of the game.

“Any time a top-six guy on a team is out of the lineup (rumors) are going to go around. It’s part of the game, but it’s not fun with family and stuff like that. It’s Montreal, too, and everyone was calling me. But I’m trying to block that out and wait for my turn. The team is winning, playing really well and Patty likes his top-six right now. I’ll be patient. I know I belong on the top-six, big-time, I proved it in the past, but sometimes things change in this league pretty quick. We’ll see where this goes.”

-P.A. Parenteau of the Colorado Avalanche on trade rumors between the Avalanche and Canadiens. More from Mike Chambers of All Things Avs.

DENVER – The Colorado Avalanche Hockey Club announced today that the team has signed forward P.A. Parenteau to a four-year contract through the 2015-16 season.

Parenteau, 29, recorded 67 points (18g/49a) and 89 penalty minutes in 80 games with the New York Islanders last season. He finished third on the Islanders in points, while ranking second in both assists and penalty minutes. The right winger was fifth in goals and third in power-play goals (6). Parenteau’s 67 points were a career high.

“P.A. is a skilled winger who will instantly improve our offense,” said Avalanche General Manager/Executive Vice President Greg Sherman. “He’s a dynamic player who will help our power play and compliment our young centers.”

While you can see the reasoning in what the Columbus Blue Jackets are doing with Nash—waiting until Parise signs so that all those teams that struck out on him come scrambling to the Jackets with a re-energized offer for Nash—it’s not that simple.

It might happen with some teams, but not all.

As pointed out last weekend, Bobby Ryan is another option and one that carries a better contract. Anaheim should get plenty of traction on him once Parise signs.

But even with Ryan, you have to give up good assets to get him.

There sits Parenteau on Sunday as an unrestricted free agent, available without having to give up any assets. Judging from the conversations I’ve had with a few teams over the past week, I think he’s a player that’s going to generate more interest than most people believe.

New York Islanders forward P.A Parenteau wants to focus on helping his team make the playoffs and would prefer to shelve contract negotiations until the end of the season.

Parenteau’s agent, Allan Walsh says he and his client don’t believe it is appropriate to pursue contract discussions at this time, but will listen if the Islanders are eager to negotiate.

“He’s made it very clear from the outset that he’s highly motivated to stay with the New York Islanders,” Walsh told TSN.ca via e-mail. “The Islanders gave him his first real opportunity to thrive in the NHL, he has a fantastic relationship with his teammates, the coaches, Garth Snow and the fans. Most importantly, PA sees the Islanders trending up and believes they will be a contending team for many years to come….”

An amiable sort, Parenteau said he never doubted his ability to contribute at this level, even though his path has been dotted by more than a few road blocks.

“It’s been a long road,” he said. “But I’m a pretty confident guy.”

Obviously getting a chance to play with guys such as John Tavares, also a good friend of Parenteau’s, and Matt Moulson hasn’t hurt.

“When I make a nice play around here, it doesn’t get wasted,” Parenteau said.

Now here’s where it gets interesting for the Isles, who this week signed forward Frans Nielsen to a four-year contract extension worth $11 million. Nielsen has 25 points, or roughly half those collected by Parenteau, who is slated to become an unrestricted free agent July 1. Sources familiar with the negotiations say that the team has yet to begin discussions about extending Parenteau, but with the Islanders crawling back into the edge of the playoff discussion in the Eastern Conference (they are in 11th place in the conference, nine points back of eighth-place Ottawa with four games in hand), it’s hard to imagine GM Garth Snow won’t make getting Parenteau under contract a top priority. Similarly, it’s hard to imagine Snow letting Parenteau walk away for nothing on July 1.